http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking Enabling the global human sensor net Sat, 08 Aug 2009 00:16:33 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en there will come one May night of every year that she’s alive when the whole world smells of lilacs -- Al Purdy, "May 23, 1980". http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=329 Not much is easier than bioblitzing a hospital room (provided you restrict yourself to macroscopic life). Jordan Charles came into this world at 7 lb 12 ounces, and covered in fur. The fur, of course, is lanugo, an interesting mystery of evolution in its own right, and also a possible ... http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=316 Despite spending some time with What's that bug, I can't identify the millipede, spider, or bees above. The flower, of course, is Goldenrod. A reddish centipede, 3 cm long, shared a pit trap with the spider, but the photo is kind of blurry. http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=290 Here for the weekend, I'll try to see who lives on the beach. Here are my over/unders: Plants: 24 Birds: 5 Bugs and other crunchy things (phylum arthropoda): 24 Rodents: 2 Bivalves: ? http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=280 The blitz be startin' tomorrow, aarrrr. Here's a portal where you can view observations, and help with species identification. There are also links into a wiki, where you can read (or help create) instructions, classroom tips, etc. http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=274 The 2008 blogger bioblitz is on for the week of Sept. 20 - Sept. 28. (Two weekends to work with!) Blindingly soon, yes, but what the heck. A portal will be up next week with a data spreadsheet for download; instructions on conducting a blitz; and some basic browsing and querying ... http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=261 My wife has developed a methodology for catching bats that find their way into the house. It's sound and efficient, though not as elegant as this guy's approach. Despite their name in so many languages (letuchaya mysh, fledermaus, etc.), bats are not rodents. In fact, order Chiroptera appears to be ... http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=233 My 4-year old kept an eye on this guy while I went into the house for my camera. It's flicking its tongue to get a smell of the surroundings; it's tongue is forked to enable it to smell in stereo. It is Thamnophis sirtalis, the common garter snake, one of ... http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=221 Here's a food web study I never imagined: Research Highlights Nature 453, 960-961 (19 June 2008) | doi:10.1038/453960f; Published online 18 June 2008 Ecology: Dotty diets Nature Nanotech. doi:10.1038/nnano.2008.110 (2008) Those who worry about nanotechnology do so partly because of its potential environmental impact. So David Holbrook and a team from the US National Institute ... http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=218 yellow-crowned night-heron Originally uploaded by cyanocorax Last weekend we saw this handsome night-heron while kayaking. Not a bird I often see, as I don't get out birding much. A friend of mine in University Park reported two in her suburban yard the same weekend -- so now it is officially a ... http://eb1.cs.umbc.edu/fieldmarking/?p=217